-moon
from the Outside
"The Outsiders" plays the Michigan
Theater. Anything starring Patrick
Sayze, directed by Francis Ford
Coppola, will certainly be good. 4:10
p.m.
michigandaily.com /arts
Bill Elliott' will have
ou dancing ust for kicks
OS
TUESDAY
NOVEMBER 14, 2000
w
By Wilhelmina Mauritz
Daily Arts Writer
"Billy Elliot" is like a song that
whenever you hear it, makes you
want to burst out singing.
The fact that you heard it some-
how brightens up the rest of your
day. On the sur-
face, the film is
: a story about a
young boy find-
Billy Elliot ing his life's
passion in ballet
Grade: B+ dancing, but on
a much deeper
At Showcase level it is about
and Quality 16 connections,
how they are so
important in life
and how without
them it is hard
_to be truly
happy. One of
the major themes of "Billy Elliot" is
that people should always be them-
selves. Since this is a piece of
advice I truly believe, I always like
to see it being advocated.
The film takes place in a small
mining town in New England. Billy
(played by newcomer Jamie Bell) is
a sweet kid that is kind of on his
own in life after the death of his
mother and the fact that his father
and older brother are wrapped up in
a coal miner's strike that has taken
over the whole town. His father
gives him money to take boxing
lessons but Billy finds himself more
drawn to ballet. Billy works hard at
his newfound interest and finds that
not only does he enjoy it, but he's
also quite good.
"Billy Elliot" is filled with so
many touching scenes that in the
span of five minutes, this movie can
make you laugh and cry, although
there are by far more laughs than
tears.
The relationship that Billy has
with his senile grandma is a perfect
example of this. On the one hand,
there is the grandma who often has
trouble remembering who Billy is
and has a tendency to wander off
from time to time, and there is the
grandma that likes to remind every-
one all the time that she could have
been a professional dancer.
There is also a hilarious shot of
Billy practicing some dance moves
out of a book in his bathroom and
he uses a glass with his grandma's
teeth in it to hold the book open.
Small details like that are what
make this movie great.
Besides hid grandma, Billy's
friend Michael adds quite a bit of
comic relief. Michael likes to wear
his sister's dresses around from
time-to-time and from the moment
that Billy tells him that he has taken
up ballet, all Michael can think
about is getting a tutu. Unlike
Billy's family, Michael appreciates
Billy for what he. is, even if it isn't
the "normal" thing for many boys.
"Billy Elliot" drives home the
fact that kids always seem to be
more astute than adults because
they don't hold anything back.
Adults, who are in denial a lot of
their life, may try to hide their mis-
ery but as is the case with kids, they
can see right through all of that.
There's a really comical and yet
poignant scene where Billy is talk-
ing with his friend who is also the
daughter of his dance teacher. She
explains to Billy that her mother
and father sleep in different beds so
"they don't have sex." She tells
Billy that her father had an affair
with someone he worked' with but
that she's not supposed to know
that. Billy asks if her mother sleeps
around too and without hesitation
she replies quite matter of factly,
"No, she's unfulfilled, that's why
she dances."
The one downside to the film
"Billy Elliot" has to do with its dra-
matics.
It is one thing to be moved emo-
tionally by a movie but it is quite
another to be blatantly pushed to
feel that particular way. There were
a few sentimental scenes that felt
like they were just put in there to
make the audience cry.
At certain times when I felt like
crying, I found myself wondering
why this scene was even taking
place and asking what purpose it
served?
All in all "Billy Elliot" is great.
Although the storyline may not look
like it would appeal'to all, it has
something in it for everyone.
"Billy Elliot" is filled with so
much heart and soul that you
shouldn't be surprised if you find
yourself doing a little two-step com-
ing out of the theater.
courtesy of Universal
I heard-things, I heard things: Cuba Gooding Jr. and Bob De Niro face of in the based-on-a-true-story film "Men of Honor."
Dc Niro, Goodingr"Ostnve
frstrengt i Honor'
By Lyle Henretty
Daily Arts Writer
Many movies centering on humans with extraordinary
talents have the habit of making that particular talent
look easy. Think especially of sports movies, where
every good quarterback makes the perfect throw, or the
slugger comes through every time. The talented person
hardly breaks a sweat. These films seem to suggest that
Men of
Grade: B-
At Showcase
and Quality 16
"determination."
the talent lays deep within the indi-
vidual, and that there is no
accounting for it. In director
George Tillman Jr.'s "Men of
Honor," the audience is made to
feel the strife facing naval diving
hopeful Carl Brashear (Cuba
Gooding Jr.). Tillman's frequent
cutting comes to a halt whenever
we watch Brashear overcome his
next obstacle, whether they are
physical or emotional.
We are made to feel every
breath, every strain. Both director
and actor fully realize the power
this man has, and bring new mean-
ings to the words "strength" and
except for the vibrant presence of Robert De Niro'
Master Chief Billy Sunday.
The narrative, based on a true story, follows a Worl
War 11 era Brashear in his quest to become not only the
first black navy diver, but also the best one to ever put on
a wet suit. In the opening scenes, his sharecropper father
tells him never to give up. And, by God, he never does.
Billy Sunday is his naval instructor who, at first, does-
n't much like having a black man in his class, but even-
tually warms to him after some of the high-octane ten-
sion builders suggested above. Watching De Niro emcite
is a joy, as he can become enraged without making a
sound. Though, unlike the more quiet gangsters that
made him famous, Master Chief Sunday speaks con-
stantly, much of it inaudible in Dc Niro's pitch-perfec$
southern bark.
Gooding does an acceptable job, but the actor sup
presses the manic energy that won him an Academy
Award for "Jerry Maguire." Here his attempts to go
"serious" fall short of the mark. His eyes smolder and he
huffs a lot, especially toward Sunday, but we never know,
his character quite like we did in his Oscar turn.
As Brashear begins to break racial barriers by proving
that he truly is the best, he must then take on the bureau-
cracy that is the evolving United States Navy. After he *
wounded while busy being a hero, he decides that he
must now be the only old-one-legged-black navy diver in
the world. Any guess at the outcome?
This is pure hokum, but hokum at its best. Highly
entertaining performances from all involved, including
the underutilized Charlize Theron as Sunday's wife and
character actor Hal Holbrook as a crazy racist comman-
dant at the diving academy. Also, see if you can spot
Joshua Leonard from "The Blair Witch Project."
This film is clearly pleading for Oscar contention, but
really brings nothing new to the table. "Men of Honor'"
should be enjoyed for what it is: A pleasant drama with
nice cast.
fB1l of the ball: The newcomer star of Billy Elliot, Jamie Bell.
Universal Pictures
GROUND
1432 Washtenaw Ave.
French Room
(hook for sign outside)
8;45 Wednesday evening
1. The center or origin of rapid,
intense activity or change...
2. A college Ministry program involv-
ing discussion, connection with other
students and drinking coffee.
If "Men of Honor" has a fatal flaw, it is that every
other scene is a set piece for dramatic tension. Tillman
does a wonderful job with this tension throughout most
of the movie, whether it is situational or tension between
his intense cast of interesting characters.
The problem, though, is that the protagonist comes out
the victor every time, and by the "climax" the audience
is so sure things will turn out happy that the tension com-
pletely disappears.
Thus, for the easily disenchanted, the last half-hour of
this 128-minute film could be quite dull. Dull, that is,
"Dr. Livingston I presume...
or cultural imperialism?'
Tilet
DAG: Another failed attempt for
'U' grad David Allen Grier
1. Cancun (again)
2. Home
3. The Philippines!!!
Join other students at First Presbyterian Church to do
hands on mission work and have a lot of fun.
Help others, help yourself.
Contact: GrahamJBaird@aol.com
One Mile West of Weber's Inn
$5.00 Matinees til 6pm
$4.75 Kids & Seniors all shows
$5.75 with Student ID
$5.75 Late Shows Fri & Sat
0No passes
Unlimited Free Drink Refills & .25c Corn Refills
By Matt Manser
Daily Arts \Writer
What happens when the president's
top Secret Service agent dives away
from the presi-
dent when an
IM ' .d assassin fires a
gun? He gets
DAG demoted to
guarding the first
NBC lady, and wacki-
ness ensues. At
Tonight at 9:30 p.m. least that's the
* intention of
"DAG," which
airs Tuesdays at
9:30 on NBC.
David Alan
Grier ("In Living
Color") plays
Secret Service agent Jerome Daggett,
the guy who dove the wrong way.
(You see, Jerome's last name begins
with "Dag," which is also the initials
of David Alan Grier. "DAG" also
rhymes with "JAG," which airs
Tuesdays on CBS. The diving inci-
dent was captured on film and aired
across the globe. It also made great
monologue material, as shown by
cameos by Jay Leno, Conan O'Brien
and even Andy Richter. In Daggett's
defense, he thought the president was
standing to his right, not to his left.
Still, Dag is reassigned to the team
guarding the first lady, also known as
the B-team.
First Lady Judith Whitman is
played by Leon Phelps' favorite lady,
Delta Burke ("Designing Women").
Whitman quickly assigns Dag menial
tasks like grocery shopping, walking
Betsy Ross, Whitman's dog. Dag feels
he is overqualified for such tasks, but
Whitman only does it to point out
how bad it feels to be taken for grant-
ed. Whitman has been taken for
granted for years. When her husband
ran for senator, she wrote one of his
most memorable speeches, known as
think), he reveals to his daugJer
Camilla (Lea Moreno Young) that he's
never heard the country. Camillas
responds, "Don't they make you take
a test to become president?" President
Whitman later ponders, "I don't know
why we have to deal with these damn
foreigners anyway." Another droll
performance in the premiere episode
is turned in by comedian Larry
Miller, who plays guy in charge of the
Secret Service. But like Ras,
Miller is not a regular cast member. t
Aside from Dag, the rest of the E-
team consists of clueless Edwardi
Pillows (Stephen Dunham, "Oh Grow
Up") and overzealous Susan Cole
(Emmy Laybourne, "Superstar").
They have some humorous moments,
like when they get distracted from
their duties of protecting the first lady
by arguing about why pesto sauc is
green. Other than that, there's na
whole lot for them to do. Also in the
cast is Lauren Tom ("Grace Under
Fire") as Ginger Chin, the first lady's
secretary. Chin is hustler who conned
her way into the job of secretary.
However, instead of having good
0 LITTLE NICKY (PG-13)
11:35, 1:00, 1:25, 3:00, 3:20.5:00,
520 6:55 7:25 9:00, 9:25, 10:45
OMEN ON HONOR (R)
1:55, 4:25, 7:00, 9:35
ORED PLANET (PG-13)
1:25, 3:35, 5:45, 7:55, 10:05
OCHARLIES ANGELS (PG-13)
11:30, 12.45, 1:30. 1:50, 2:50, 3:30,
3:50, 4:55, 5:30, 5:50, 7:05, 7:30, 7:50,
9:05, 9:40, 10:00
O LEGEND OF BAGGER VANCE (PG-13)
11:40, 145,2:15, 4.15,4:50, 7:00,
7:20, 9:30,.9:45
BEDAZZLED (PG-13)
1205 2:05,4:05 6:10,8:00
Food For Thought
Hanoi Jane
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